That Smirk
by Raven Woods 2003
Summary: Katie Bell is sick of that smirk. He does it all the time, and damn is it annoying. Decided that there weren't nearly enough KBOW fics, and i wanted to change that. Some questionable language.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N i should probably be writing new chapters for my other stories, but i decided that there simply wasn't enough fanfiction for one of my OTPs. And i wanted to help change that. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Bell! What the hell are you doing? Get over there and grab that Quaffle!" I growl at my quidditch Captain, though I know full well he can't hear me, before diving towards Alicia and Angie.

"Wood's doing my bloody nut in." I grumbled, as Alicia tossed the ball to me. the wind blew hard, causing our robes to fly to the side. It was hard enough to bloody fly, never mind catch and throw balls. I glanced over to wear Harry was desperately trying to fight the wind and capture the snitch. This was his first practice on the team, and it was giving him an example of what Oliver was likely to put him through for the next three years.

"Potter! Catch that bloody Snitch!" I heard Oliver yell. I turned on my broom and tried to shout at him over the winds.

"Give the boy a break, Wood! he's been flying barely a week!" I screamed, the wind probably drowning me out. I glared as he flew over to me.

"What are you yelling about, Bell?" he said with that sly smirk that made me want to smack him.

"You shouldn't be pushing Harry like that! He only just learnt how to fly and you're acting like he's a professional player!" he said with a snarl. Wood just continued to smirk. Bastard.

"I only allow experts to play on my team, Bell, if he can't handle it then maybe he shouldn't be playing." He said.

* * *

We heard a yell, and saw that Harry was waving something above his head. Oliver turned back to me with that smirk still plastered on his face.

"You sure he can't handle it?" he said, before turning to the rest of the team.

"Alright you guys, back to the ground!" he yelled, before swooping past me and landing on th ground. We followed him, standing in a line before him like soldiers.

"All of you, one lap around the pitch for cool down. Off we go!" he began, the rest of us following with a groan. He was miles ahead of us, but the wind had died down a bit now so we knew he could hear us.

"You're going to bloody kill us, Wood!" yelled Angelina, who was trying her best to catch up to him. She had always been the more competitive of us, bar Oliver himself of course. He ignored her, which was always a bad idea.

* * *

We all stumbled into the changing rooms panting, and Oliver was stood there as if nothing had happened. He wasn't even out of breath. Angelina immediately challenged him.

"You can't keep doing this to us, Wood! eventually we're going to be so broken you won't have a team at all!"

"you all look fine to me." he replied with a shrug, and that god awful smirk was back.

"Are you kidding?" said Fred,

"we feel like we've been killed four times over!" finished George. We all nodded and slumped down on the benches, Alicia laying down and the rest of us leaning up against the lockers. Oliver was leaning against the shower room wall, grinning.

"Well maybe if you all ate right, you wouldn't feel as tired." Alicia groaned at this comment.

"Girls need chocolate, Oliver, and ice cream." Angie and I nodded in agreement.

"And Fred and I need strength so we can pull all our pranks." Fred cut in, with a nod of agreement from his twin.

"Well maybe if you didn't pull so many you'd be able to attend practice more often!" Oliver cheerfully retorted, grabbing his towel and heading into the boy's showers. After a minute of almost silence (bar heavy breathing) the shower switched on.

"I'm off too. maybe the hot water will make me feel my hands and feet again!" Angelina said, he voice yelling the last part so that she knew Wood would hear. Alicia nodded, and the both grabbed their towels and went into the girls'. Fred and George sighed and followed Oliver after a while, talking quietly about some sort of prank they were pulling. Harry slipped out of the door, not even bothering with shower and probably running off with those two friends of his, and I sat alone for a short while, listening as the showers hit the tiles.

* * *

"Katie, are you not getting a shower?" I jumped as Alicia and Angelina emerged from the showers, their hair wet and towels wrapped around them. I nodded and smiled.

"Sorry, you know what I'm like. Started daydreaming and completely lost track of where I was." I grabbed my towel and ran past them into the showers, turning it on as I heard the door close. i began to sing the tune of 'Double Trouble' to myself as the hot water hit me, when I heard a pronounced cough.

"You don't sound half bad." Oliver Wood's smirk could almost be seen through his tone.

"Shut up, Wood, didn't you leave ages ago."

"No, I was sorting out my hair. And I'm being honest. Why don't you join the choir?" he asked, with a chuckle. I glared at the wall in front of me.

"very funny, Wood." I seethed, turning off the shower and wrapping the towel around me. I stepped into the main changing room to see his smirking face. I glared at him as I went to my clothes.

"Again, I wasn't joking." I turned to see that the smirk was gone, replaced by what seemed to be a genuine smile. I rolled my eyes.

"I'm sorry for pushing you guys out there." My head snapped around in shock. Oliver Wood never apologised for the conditions of a practice.

"You're joking, right? Oliver Wood, apologising for pushing his team too far? Oh, look!" I pointed to thin air, "And there's a pig flying." I rolled my eyes again and began brushing through my soaked hair.

"No, I'm serious. Just… don't tell the others I told you this, but I do appreciate the work you guys put into this. you do me proud every time I see you play." His smile grew as he spoke, and I turned and sat on the bench.

"I bet breakfast is being served." I said, closing my eyes and imagining the delicious food. Oliver laughed lightly.

"Then I suggest that you hurry up and get ready, or you'll miss it. If you want I could wait outside." He motioned to the wall, but I shook my head.

"You're fine. See you back up at the castle." He nodded and left, the door closing behind him.

* * *

I left the changing room, my chocolate hair still wet, when I jumped out of my skin. "Oliver you bloody terrified me!" I said, slapping his shoulder playfully as he stood up straight from where he had been leaning on the wall outside the changing rooms. He smirked.

"Sorry, Katie, i didn't mean to surprise you. I was just waiting for you."

"I told you not to."

"You don't have to be so cut off from me all the time, you know." his smirk was still there, and I took all my inner strength not to slap him.

"Whatever, Wood." I said, and we fell into a silence for a few minutes. I hesitated, before saying, "You're a good Captain, Oliver." He looked up at me, and I smiled, "Even though you do want to break every bone in our bodies." We laughed, and he threw his arm over my shoulders.

"Oh, why thank you, Miss Bell!" he teased, as we headed up to the castle, "I shall have to put that on my resume. I'm sure a reference like that would certify my a place on any quidditch team I wanted!" I placed a dramatic hand on his chest and laughed when I playfully elbowed him.

"ok, but don't tell the others it was me."

* * *

We continued to talk as we entered the castle, laughing as we sat down at the Gryffindor table.

"You took a while, Oliver. We thought you'd left long before us." Alicia said, her mouth full of toast. Oliver shrugged.

"I was doing my hair, and then I figured it would only be polite to wait for Katie." He did that smirk again. I glared at it.

"even though I told him not to." I said, stabbing my fork into a sausage and stuffing it in my mouth. Oliver grinned and bit into his slice of toast.

"I don't understand how you can live on a piece of toast." Fred commented, motioning towards his full plate. Oliver laughed.

"It's called will power."

"But you're not Will, you're Oliver." Said George, pointing at him with a fork. Oliver rolled his eyes as the rest of us laughed.

* * *

Most the day passed rather slowly – I got told off in Transfiguration for talking to Alicia, in history of magic I narrowly escaped detention for hexing George after he fired a paper aeroplane at my head, double potions ended with both Fred and George getting detentions, and our entire table being covered in black gloop and in Muggle Studies I learnt stuff I already knew, being a Half-Blood.

"I took Muggle Studies so that I could ace at least one NEWT. I had no idea it was going to be that boring!" Angie moaned as we made our way to dinner, "I'm starting to wish we'd taken Care of Magical creatures with Alicia instead." I nodded in agreement as we walked down the corridor in a crowd of students.

"Do you really think Wood's going to make us practice tonight?" George asked, appearing at Angie's side,

"We're completely drained!" Fred finished, appearing beside me. The four of us sighed in unison, filtering into the Great Hall and heading over to the Gryffindor table, where Alicia was waiting.

"Wood's not here yet; I'm praying he doesn't make us go out in that." She nodded to the window, which looked like a waterfall it was raining so hard. The four of us sat around her, Fred placing his head on the table and George grabbing a chicken leg and biting into it. Angeline placed her head on Alicia's shoulder in exasperation.

* * *

"You all look like you could do with a day off! We've only been here two weeks!" we all looked up hopefully as Oliver sat down beside me.

"Does that mean we don't have to have practice tonight?" Alicia said, with a grin. Oliver laughed.

"No way. you guys need your training." We all groaned, Angie and Alicia hugged one another as Fred threw his head back onto the table. George continued to eat and I turned on Oliver.

"You have to be kidding me! We are all going to drown out there!"

"It's only rain, Bell, you aren't going to die." He said with that infuriating smirk.

"We might get pneumonia or something! How do you pan on winning the cup with your team in the infirmary?" Oliver hesitated for a second.

"Well if I come out fine then you should too." he said after a second, causing the team to look at us, hopefully staring at me to try and persuade him.

"Wood, are you blind? We barely survived lessons, never mind three hours in that lot." I pointed at the window.

"Stop being so dramatic, Bell." He said, rolling his eyes, "I'm tired too, but I'm still getting off my ass and practising. Come on, you gits, get in that changing room!" he montioned to the door with his arms, and the rest of the team groaned.

"Wood, you aren't going to get us on top form if we don't want to be there! We hardly ever get a night off from practice I'm sure we'll be fine missing today-"

"But let's not risk it! I want this year to be the year we finally win that cup!" he punched the air triumphantly, then looked down on our miserable expressions.

"Please." He looked at me in particular, knowing that if I agreed the rest of them would. I couldn't keep eye contact with him staring at me like that. I glanced back. He still had that look. It was like torture.

"Ugh! Fine!"

* * *

I regretted it the minute we got onto the pitch. We were drenched in seconds, and I was freezing. "Please don't make us practice in this, Oliver!" Alicia whined, "I'm so cold!" George wrapped his arms around her, before pulling me into the hug. Fred meanwhile had Angie in a hug.

"Come on, Wood, this is insane! They're bloody freezing!" George yelled, his head between mine and Alicia's.

"Oh stop! I'm cold too, just man up and get on with it. The quicker you get your asses into gear, the quicker you can go in!" The boys groaned and Alicia looked like she was about to cry. Not that it would matter, her face was wet anyway.

"Oliver," I left Georg's grasp and ran over to him, pulling on the arm of his robe, "please see sense! Alicia, she's about to cry. I feel like I am going to freeze to death. Look at Harry! He's going blue!" I pointed to the poor lad, who was trying to hug some warmth into himself. "Please, Wood, if you give a damn about any of us, let us go back inside! Davies even cancelled his team's training!" Oliver turned around and pointed towards the sky.

"I do give a damn about you, all of you, and that's why you have to practice. I don't want to have to forfeit the games every time it drizzles, Bell. All of you, get in the sky, it'll warm you up!" I shook my head at him before kicking off the ground with the others.

* * *

None of us were speaking to Wood. We'd been in the sky five minutes until he was forced to let us all leave. We had all refused to move once we were in the air, and Fred had almost been hit in the arm with a Bludger because of it. We filed into the changing room, all of us immediately going into the showers, leaving Wood alone. I was, as usual, the last to leave the girls', and I could still hear a shower running in the boys'. "I'm sorry, Bell." I turned to see Wood, a towel around his waist, stood against the shower room wall. I hadn't even noticed the water had switched off. He looked like he'd been crying.

"I'm sorry I tried to make you all train today, it wasn't fair. I truly am the worst Captain ever." I didn't even think twice. I ran over to him, throwing my arms around his neck.

"you aren't the worst Captain, Oliver. You just get carried away sometimes." I smiled at him and pulled away, before registering that I had just hugged Oliver Wood. who had been wearing nothing but a towel. I could feel my face burn, and I hoped to high hell that the crappy light in the changing room didn't reveal it. He laughed, but I could still hear the tears in his voice.

"I'm so manly, crying like a bloody baby." He furiously wiped at his eyes, and I smiled.

"I think it's sweet that you care for your team." I hugged him again, this time fully aware that he was shirtless. But I didn't care. Seeing other people cry, especially Oliver, would send me into floods.

"Thank you, Katie. Really." he smiled, and I grabbed my stuff and headed up to the castle.

* * *

The common room was packed. Fred, George, Angie and Alicia had somehow managed to obtain the couch, and Harry was talking quietly with Ron in the corner. I sat down in the armchair, which was miraculously vacant. "Where's Wood?" Alicia asked, a mild look of concern on her face. I sighed.

"He's fine. Beating himself up a bit."

"So he should be. I almost froze out there!" Angeline said, crossing her arms across her chest.

"please don't be like that, Angie. he feels really bad." She grunted her reply, and the five of us sat in silence for a while before Alicia chirped up.

"You know, I heard that Hermione girl in first year is pretty smart. I was thinking about asking her to help me with my homework-"

"Don't bother, Allie," I said, shaking my head, "If she smart, she's not going to do your homework for you, is she?" Now it was Alicia's turn to cross her arms. that's when he came in, looking like there had been no point in having a shower.

"You went back out there?" I half-yelled, practically throwing myself out of the chair and running to him. he sighed.

"Well all the stuff was still out, wasn't it? you ran into the changing room so fast I had to leave it. almost forgot it, but I couldn't leave it. anyway, it's all fine now-"

"It isn't damn fine!" Angelina had hurried to my side and had grabbed Oliver's arm, leading him to the fire, "You'll get sick!"

"I could have made you lot sick, that would have been worse."

"Don't be daft, Wood," Said Fred,

"yeah, we don't blame you, we know how much you want that cup." We all made some noise of agreement. He sat down in front of the flames, and I knelt beside him, putting my arms around his neck and resting my head on his shoulder. Angie knelt on his other side and hugged his arm. Fred, George and Alicia remained on the couch, saying what a fantastic Captain he was. We were trying to make him feel better, but I could tell it was barely working.

"Go up and get changed, Ollie." I said gently, using the name that we only ever used when he went into his miserable mood. He sighed and nodded, before standing and shuffling up to his room.

* * *

He returned a few moments later in his Gryffindor pyjamas. Nobody could show house pride like him. he had that smirk back, and for once I didn't feel like knocking it out of him. "Hey, Katie." I was the last one up. Fred and George had gone up to their room just after Oliver, saying that they had a prank to work on, and Angie reminded Alicia of a homework they had.

"Hi, Ollie." He playfully swatted my head with a laugh.

"You know not to all me that." He said, walking around the couch and sitting beside me. I shrugged.

"and I thought we were starting to get along." I said with false sadness, before he snorted and leaned back into the couch, pulling his legs up with him. I raised an eyebrow and he did that smirk, before he pulled me to lay with him, his arm around my shoulders and my head resting on his chest. We sat like that for a moment, my head rising and falling with his every breath. After a while of looking at the ceiling, i sat up, his arm falling to my waist. We looked at one another for a while, and I began to debate whether I should wipe the smirk from him.

"I think we get along just fine." He said, his smirk falling as he closed his eyes and lifted his hands behind his head. I continued to watch him, and after a second he opened one eye.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked. i shrugged, before grinning.

"I'm off to bed. I presume we have practise tomorrow?" the smirk returned, and I groaned as I stood up.

"You really are planning to kill us all, aren't you?" I asked, and he shrugged.

"Maybe after we win the cup." He said. I glared at him all the way up the stairs.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I do love reading reviews, especially if it's constructive criticism. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Katie? Katie wake up!" I opened one eye to be greeted by Alicia's face. I groaned and turned over, folding my pillow over my head. Alicia seized the opportunity, grabbed it, and began pelting me with it.

"Alright, Alright! Bloody Nora! Will you stop that?" I said, struggling to climb out of my sheets whilst simultaneously guarding my head. Once I was stood, she threw the pillow on the bed and massaged her temples.

"Damn that Wood. Here, Katie, help me wake up Angie. You know how she is." I grumbled as we proceeded to coax her out of her bed.

"Come on, Angie," I moaned, sitting on the edge of her bed, "You can't leave us two alone with the boys." It wasn't until Alicia mentioned food that she finally willed herself out of bed, and we began getting ready.

"I'm having the bathroom first!" Alicia yelled, grabbing her towel and racing through the door. Angie and I groaned in unison.

"I'm going next, you lazy thing. It's the least you could do, I mean we could have left you to sleep in and get an earful off Wood." she grunted, throwing herself back onto the bed.

* * *

"Nice sleep?" we glared at Oliver as we reached the pitch; the boys were already there, Fred and George both looking half asleep. Angie growled as her reply, stalking past Wood and kicking off from the ground. He watched her, confused.

"All the hot water was gone by the time she got the shower. She wasn't best happy." I said, patting him on the shoulder before joining Angie in the air. moments later the whole team were with us, Wood yelling plays at us.

"Bell, get over there! And don't forget that you must move left before you pass to Alicia. Clear?" I nodded with a sigh before zooming off.

"He's a right pain in the arse, he is." Alicia snapped, as we flew beside eachother. The plan was to trick the other team into thinking we were just absently chatting before Angelina threw Alicia the quaffle and we split off, hopefully winning me a chance to slip a goal past Miles Bletchley. I nodded to Alicia, watching as Oliver showed Angelina a sloth roll, which he probably wanted her to do some point in game.

"I swear too Merlin he's going to get us all killed." George said with a grimace as we passed him. we played the move – and Wood swooped in and grabbed the quaffle just as it was about to go in.

"Good job, girls. If you think about how stupid Bletchley is, that'll earn us a straight ten points!" he smiled at the three of us, before flying over to Fred and George and pointing around, presumably telling them where to go next.

* * *

The practice was three hours long, and by the end of it almost every bone in my body ached. "How can you do this every morning?" Harry said feebly, adjusting his glasses as he rotated his shoulder.

"You'll get used to it." Fred said, patting him on his other side. We all nodded in agreement as Wood bounced in.

"That was brilliant, you're all improving! Remember, Angie, you have to try and do a sloth roll during the game with Slytherin. Bell, Alicia. Next practice we'll be tidying up that play, alright? Fred, George. Don't forget that you can't just hit the Bludgers in any direction. You have to make sure it isn't towards me, the girls or Harry. Here. harry?" the boy looked up, "Make sure you get that snitch." He did that devilish smirk again, "We have one practice left before the match. We must train hard then, or we might lose. This is the year we win, guys!" he grinned at us, before grabbing his towel and heading into the showers.

* * *

"Halloween on Sunday." Alicia said with a smile, as we sat down at dinner that evening. I nodded, immediately pouncing on the spaghetti and meatballs. I piled it onto my plate, before my fork was taken away.

"You won't get anywhere eating like that. You need a proper, healthy diet if you want to have a decent Quidditch career." I glared as Oliver sat beside me.

"Oh save me the lecture. I'm bloody starving." He sighed and handed me my fork bac, and I dramatically stabbed my fork into a meatball and shoved it in my mouth. He made a face at me, and I made one back.

"Anyways," Alicia said, glaring at me and Oliver before turning back to the rest of the group, "I can't wait for the trip to Hogsmead." We all nodded in agreement.

"Have any of you guys got a date?" Alicia asked, curious. We all shook our heads. She sighed.

"Yeah. Me neither." We ate in silence for a minute, before Angelina put her fork down heavily.

"I suppose we could go together, as a team. I would say Harry too, but I overheard him telling that Hermione girl that his uncle wouldn't sign his form." We all made some noise of acknowledgment, and Fred stood up.

"Well I suppose he'd be going around with Hermione and Ron anyway. I'm off back to the common room. Who's coming?" we all stood and made to leave.

* * *

It was Halloween, and we were making our way to Hogsmead. Oliver was grumbling under his breath, something about it being 'damn freezing' and that he 'could've still been in bed'. Angie playfully nudged his arm.

"And here we thought that you love early mornings." Oliver rolled his eyes.

"When it means quidditch. You know we could have had the whole day to practice? Now we're stuck with a few hours after we get back." He sighed, "I suppose it's better than nothing." I had to jump a bit being as short as I was, but I threw my arm around his neck.

"oh cheer up, Ollie. Be grateful you aren't stuck with the Twins back at the castle. They said something about pranking Filch's office while we were gone." Oliver smiled a little.

"It's their own damn fault. They should have known that McGonagall would ban them from these trips the minute they started stocking up on prank supplies." At least his smile was back.

"An I've told you not to call me Ollie."

"Keep saying that," Alicia said, looping her arm through his as she swooped around his other side, "And we're only going to do it more often." The three of us laughed as Angelina leaped on his back, singing his nickname at the top of her lungs.

"Oi, Wood!" We all looked up to see one Cedric Diggory heading towards us. Oliver smiled, expecting him to say something quidditch related.

"Think I couldm er, borrow your chasers for the day? See, mine are all guys and I don't get nearly as much… appreciated… attention." He smirked, looking at how the three of us were holding him. we all separated ourselves from our Captain and glared at Diggory as Oliver stepped protectively in front of us.

"Are you sure you wouldn't appreciate it?" The accent, to be honest, only made him sound slightly scarier, and he held himself in a way that might suggest that he would be prepared to fight.

"very funny, Wood. Fine hows about we make a deal. I'll give you the next match if you let me have your finest chaser for a couple hours." He winked at me, and that's when it happened.

Oliver Wood punched Cedric Diggory.

* * *

We all sat in the Great Hall. Cedric wasn't at his table, having been in the infirmary the whole day with what the whole team thought to be a broken nose. Oliver had been permitted to have his day in Hogsmead, having had three witnesses to what was a completely reasonable punch. He had been in McGonagall's office since they had returned, probably getting a detention. After all, she couldn't let him off punishment-free. He entered the Great Hall and sat down, beginning to pile food onto his plate.

"What about all those lectures on diets, Wood?" George said, pointing to all the food on Oliver's plate. He shrugged, that smirk sliding onto his face.

"It's a special occasion." He winked at the group, before popping a sweet into his mouth. He seemed to want to forget what had happened, so the team avoiding it, although the Weasley twins were giving him the biggest grins I'd ever seen. I was about to tell them to stop smiling like fools, when suddenly, the doors of the Great Hall banged open and Professor Quirrell ran into the room.

"TROLL! IN THE DUNGEON! TROLL IN THE DUNGEON!" he screamed, running towards the teachers' table. He stopped about half way and looked on dazed, "I thought you ought to know." he said simply before falling to the ground. That's when the Great Hall erupted into chaos.

Alicia grabbed my hand, and she pulled me towards the doors. Angelina was behind us, holding onto my robes. "SILENCE!" Dumbledore bellowed, causing the hall to stop moving. I watched out of the corner of my eye as Fred and George began shoving as much food as possible into their robes. Dumbledore instructed Prefects to lead their houses to the dorms, and of course the chaos more or less resumed.

"Katie! Alicia! Angie!" the three of us stopped moving as Oliver ran over to us, avoiding being pushed by the crowd. He wrapped an arm around me as he searched for Percy, being the tallest out of the four of us. Eventually he pulled me forwards. My hand was still encased in Alicia's, and Angie was still holding onto my robes, so they were pulled too. We reached Percy and a few of the others, including Harry and Ron.

* * *

The common room was practically silent, if not for a few chattering students. I sat biting my nail worriedly, me and Alicia crammed into one chair with Oliver sat on the arm of my side, his arm around the back of the chair behind us, and the Weasley twins on the floor stuffing their faces with the food they had grabbed, Angelina occasionally grabbing a pumpkin pasty and slowly eating it. "That boy has a bloody death wish." Oliver said suddenly, looking to me and Alicia. We nodded. He'd gone missing, as well as Ron. Probably going to find Hermione in the bathrooms, where she had been all day, crying.

"I bet that the three of them have gone to try and beat the troll up. after last year they could probably take one on." Alicia said, squeezing my shoulders. Situations like this always worried me. What if it had been the troll itself that had stormed the Great Hall, instead of the poor stuttering teacher that many made fun of? What if Oliver, or the twins had been foolish enough to go chasing it?

"They're only first year, Allie." Angie said with a sigh, "I doubt Oliver could take on a mountain troll, let alone us!" She said, exasperated. Like me, she always worried about people, but took it out by ranting rather than, well, worrying.

"Don't say that!" I wailed, "You're talking like they're going to die!" Angie looked as if she was about to say something, but the rest of the team shot her a look and she shut up.

* * *

Harry, Ron and Hermione had returned to the common room later that night, and I had run up and hugged each of them, despite the fact that they barely knew me. what could I say? I had always been a bit of a motherly figure to most of the younger students. "Do you know how lucky you are?" I half-yelled at them, as I hugged them all in turn. They had told almost the entire common room (except for those that had gone to bed) what had happened with the troll, and I must say that although I was furious that the pair of them had been so stupid, I was also proud of my teammate and his friend for protecting Hermione, and for knocking out a full-grown mountain troll. The three of them nodded grimly and went straight off to bed, as did many of the other students who had simply stayed up for the story. Oliver smiled at me as I sat down beside him.

"See? They're fine. No need for worries." He said, his arm not moving from where it had been all evening. I sighed and rested my head into the crook of his arm.

"I still do. I just don't like thinking about people getting hurt." He sighed and let his arm fall around my shoulders, before he squeezed me in a sideways hug.

"I can't believe we missed practice," I said, looking up at him, "Does this mean that we have no time to perfect those plays you said?" Oliver shook his head.

"Don't worry Bell. I booked the pitch for Monday. Explained to McGonagall that tonight was our last chance to practice and she said she'd have a chat with Flitwick, see if he could convince Davies to give it up for the evening." We all sighed at this. although it was our last practice and we needed help, having it on a school night would be most annoying.

* * *

Alicia and Angie had gone to bed, and the only people in the common room were me, Oliver, Fred and George. We were eating the left overs that Fred and George had spread over the floor. "How much did you two grab?" Oliver said, a chocolate frog in his mouth. The twins shrugged, and I looked at the selection, deciding on a pumpkin pasty. I bit into it, grinning at Fred, who had just thrown a Bertie Bott's at Oliver. He grumbled, picking it from the floor and tossing back, causing it to bounce off George's head.

"Hey!" he exclaimed, pulling one from his own pack and throwing it back at Wood, who retaliated once more. A small food fight began, the twins assaulting Wood whilst he tossed them back.

"Please, boys, would you stop? I washed my hair thins morning and I don't want a load of sticky sweets in it!" I said, shielding my eyes as one almost hit me. the three of them stopped, the twins simultaneously rolling their eyes.

"Well. Seen as though you've spoiled our fun, Miss Bell I figure we might as well go to bed." George said, and the two stood up and made their way upstairs to their dorm. Oliver sighed and looked at the mess.

"Well. Looks like it's just us two again." He smiled, before beginning to clean up the mess that the twins had left. I joined him, looking in disgust as I picked up a half-eaten sugar quill. Oliver laughed, plucking it from my hand and throwing it. it landed in the bin, and we quietly cheered. Oliver grabbed my waist and flung my down in celebration, and we burst into laughter, trying to stay as quiet as possible.

"Maybe you should be chaser instead of keeper!" I laughed, as we lay on the carpet staring up at the patterns on the pointed ceiling. I heard his head shake.

"Nah, I have three awesome chasers as it is. I don't think I'd ever be able to replace them" I sat up and looked at him upside down. He winked at me and smirked.

"I wish you wouldn't do that" I said, crossing my arms. the smirk turned to a grin.

"Do what?"

"That smirk! It really annoys me!" He sat up then, and that smirk was back. He was only doing it to taunt me, now.

"all the more reason to do it, Bell." And with that he winked at me, leapt to his feet and ran up the stairs to the boys' dorm.

* * *

It may surprise you, but I practically sprinted all the way from Divination to the common room that Tuesday evening. It wouldn't surprise the team. They expected this, as I was always like this about a week before a match. I suppose you could say it was anxiety, or excitement, but I simply couldn't wait to get onto the pitch and begin training. I was ready in the common room when the others got back from class. "The others are getting ready, and I'm going to go and wait at the pitch." I said, grinning. I patted his shoulder as I stood up, "Don't worry, I'll prepare the equipment for when you lot get down there." I watched as he went up the boys' stairs, before running out of the portrait hole.

Okay, so I may have been fibbing a little bit. I had to visit the owlery dead quick and send a letter to my mother, but I went down to the pitch straight after. I was busy dragging the trunk onto the pitch when I heard that all too familiar Scottish accent. "You look like you're struggling quite a bit there, Bell." He said. I looked up to see him and the others. There was that smirk again. My blood boiled.

"well you know as well as I do that this damn thing weighs a ton. Now are you going to stand there looking smug or are you going to help me?" he sighed and jogged over, picking up the trunk's other handle. We dumped it in the middle of the pitch and Oliver opened the lid.

"You can handle it from here, right?" I asked. I didn't wait for an answer, kicking straight off the ground. I went to my assigned position on the pitch.

"Aren't we going to discuss what happened on Halloween? Nobody's mentioned it since-"

"Just, please, don't talk about it. I'm guessing it wasn't one of Oliver's proudest moments, and I'm sure you wouldn't appreciate it if you brought up that time you stood on a table and asked out Lee Jordan." I cut Alicia off, and raised my eyebrows at her. She narrowed her eyes at me, then sighed as Oliver began his usual Quidditch drawl.

"You all know which play you're practicing, correct?" he yelled. We all nodded, and he smiled, he set free the four balls, before mounting his broom and kicking into the air.

* * *

This was, quite possibly, the most painful practice we'd ever had. I'd almost fallen off my broom, for one, having only just been caught by Fred. Oliver had flown over but the minute he knew I was alright he was yelling at me to get back into place. We went into the changing rooms, our bodies aching and our head's pounding. Even Oliver looked worn out.

"You still think that all these horrid practises are a good thing?" George said, leaning against the locker with his leg on the bench. Oliver rolled his eyes. God, I hated that smirk.

"Yes I do. at least now, we know all the plays that we can use on Saturday. You won't be complaining when we have that cup, will you?" He spent a minute watching over the team. I was the only one paying attention. Harry was slowly moving his wrists, after catching the snitch so many times he felt like his hand was going to drop off; Fred and George were comparing bruises – typical Weasley twins – Alicia was massaging her temples and Angeline was checking a cut on her arm. He looked… sorry.

"I know that you guys hate practices, and I'm sorry that you end up hurt." He said, looking down at his lap. The teams' attention had turned to him, "But I know that you'll be fine with it, in the end. When we're holding that cup…" he trailed off, before chuckling, "And showing it off to the Slytherins." We all laughed a bit at that. Just the image of Flint frowning as we danced around the cup made me want to win, "So that's why I have to put you all through this, you understand?" we all nodded, everyone except me and Oliver heading into the shadows.

* * *

"You did good back there." I smiled, just quiet enough for Oliver to hear. He smiled back. Not that smirk that made me so annoyed, but a genuine smile.

"You really are a very good captain." I grabbed my towel and went to have my shower, pretending not to hear the cocky "I know" behind me.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N I'm sorry this chapter has taken so long to write. I had to get what happened accurate and I've been off school for almost a whole week and I'm ashamed to say I haven't done any writing up to now *hides face in shame* anyways, this is the first Quidditch game. I took scenes from the books and the part with Harry standing on his broomstick. It's a bit shorter than my other chapters, but I didn't want to just drag it on with endless drabble. Anyways, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"OK, Men!" Oliver's voice echoed round the changing room and our attention was grabbed. Harry had been gifted a Nimbus two thousand, the lucky bugger, and we were all sitting in anxious wait for the first Quidditch game of the season.

"And women!" Angelina said pointedly, her hand gesturing towards Alicia, me and herself. Wood smirked slightly.

"And women," He nodded. He opened his mouth to continue his speech, but Fred leaped in front of him and cut him off, a hand on his chest.

"This is it! The big one!" He announced, and George jumped in front of him,

"The one we've all been waiting for!" Us three girls laughed as Fred explained that we already knew what Oliver was going to tell us. Oliver looked totally and ridiculously annoyed.

"Shut up, you two." He snapped, before continuing, "This is the best team Gryffindor's had in years. We're going to win. I know it." He glared at everyone in the room, and we knew that he'd have our guts for garters if we dared loose this game. Harry visibly gulped. Oliver grinned and started out of the room, followed by all of us. Harry was behind Fred and George. Wonderful, they were probably going to scare him with that story about the ref that went missing in the Sahara. I smiled as Alicia nudged my shoulder.

"It'll be fine. Harry's a good flier, and he has wicked eye sight." She said, a wide grin on her features. Then we were on the pitch, Madame Hooch telling us to have a nice, fair game. This was a Slytherin match, as if it was going to be anywhere near fair.

* * *

I looked up into the red and gold section of the crowd and grinned. A couple of Harry's roommates – Shawn and Dean, was it? – were waving a banner reading 'Potter for President' and the whole house was roaring with excitement for the team. "Mount your brooms, please." Hooch said, and we all did as we were told. I glared at Pucey, a chaser on Slytherin, and he gave a disgusting toothy smile, though it looked more like a grimace. Hooch blew the whistle, and we all rose into the air. I nodded to Angelina, who immediately grabbed the Quaffle as Hooch threw it into the air.

"And the Quaffle is taken immediately by Angelina Johnson, what a fine chaser that girl is, and rather attractive too-"

"JORDAN!" McGonagall screeched, causing many people by the commentator's box to wince. I chuckled as Jordan apologised and continued with the commentary. Angelina was zooming determinedly across the pitch, the Quaffle suddenly flying through the air and landing in Alicia's arms. Lee was on about Alicia, something about her being a reserve last year, but I was too busy watching the girls play Oliver's favourite tactic, The Zig Zag. Imaginative, no, but it was useful for getting the Quaffle across the pitch. Alicia was about to pass it back when Marcus flew past her, snatching the Quaffle from her grasp. He through it towards our hoops… And Oliver batted it away easily. Towards me. I grabbed it and was off towards the opposite end of the pitch, leaning forwards on my broom. I was almost there, almost there, almost there…

-THUD-

I dropped the Quaffle, a searing pain in the back of my head. My eyes water slightly. "Hit in the back of the head by a Bludger", I hear Lee say, and I sigh in frustration. Oliver will berate me for that one. Damn Bludger. I turn back towards the match. Pucey, damn him, is the one with the Quaffle now, but Fred – Or George – blocked his path with a Bludger. George, I think, flew past his twin and they high-fived. Angie was back with the quaffle now, and we all watched as she pushed towards the posts. She went to throw it, and Bletchley dived, but it was Angelina's most played moves, and she kept a solid grip on the Quaffle as he did so. Straight into the right hoop.

"GRYFFINDOR SCORES!" Jordan's loud voice filled the stadium, and the Gryffindor stands erupted in cheers as the Slytherins, moody gits, booed. I looked back over the game. Fred and George were by our hoops, Oliver probably telling them a play to try, Harry was above everyone, his eyes searching the pitch, and Alicia and Angie were hot on Pucey's tail. He was in current possession of the Quaffle. I flew after them, and noticed that Harry had just narrowly dodged a Bludger. Fred was currently aiming it towards Flint a few meters away. I dive away from the other two girls, deciding it would be best to swoop in and, hopefully, grab the Quaffle straight out of Pucey's hands.

"Chaser Pucey ducks two bludgers, two Weasleys and Chaser Bell – wait a moment, is that the snitch?!" I turn my head, panting. Damn Pucey for having quick reflexes! How he managed to duck all three of us _and_ the Bludger Fred and George had sent before them I'll never know.

* * *

Adrian had been too busy looking for the snitch that he'd dropped the Quaffle, Alicia grabbing it as it fell, but now the whole stadium's attention was on Potter and Higgs as they both dived for the snitch. They were neck a neck, and nobody moved as they zoomed towards the ground. I winced as Marcus dived in front of him, sending him and his broom spinning through the hair. "Foul!" I roared as loud as could. The entire Gryffindor house, as well as the team and members of Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff to, were yelling at Hooch to foul him.

"Free shot for Gryffindor!" Hooch said after a second, before yelling at Marcus for his dirty play. I looked back up to Harry, who was now back to searching for the snitch. Alicia was taking the foul, so I turned my attention to Lee, who was currently being berated by McGonagall for his choices of words. "Flint nearly kills the Gryffindor seeker," He finally settles on, "which could happen to anyone I'm sure." His sarcasm is so thick I'm surprised McGonagall doesn't smack him upside the head.

"Well done Alicia!" I shout to my teammate, applauding. She scored, and Angie had flown around the back of the hoops to retrieve the Quaffle. The three of us fell into a three-way Zig Zag, and we made our way across the pitch. I swerved out of the way of Montague and through the Quaffle. Angie made to catch it, but Marcus grabbed it in the air and was off with it. Wood was looking up at something, his brow furrowed, and saw Flint too late. "Slytherin scores." Lee said with a sigh. Angie hit her broom, "Damn it!" she snapped.

"What's up, Oliver? It's not like you to just abandon the game like that." I asked, now beside Wood. He was still looking upwards, but Alicia had the Quaffle now.

"I think Harry's lost his broom." Oliver grumbled. I followed his train of thought and, sure enough, Harry was jerking around in the air. I gasped and covered my mouth with my hands as he rolled over. He was clearly struggling to keep hold of his broom. Angie had stopped too, watching a few meters below us. Fred flew towards Harry, probably to get him on his broom, but Harry's Nimbus jolted higher. Fred sent a look to George, and they circled below him, ready to catch him if he was to fall. Suddenly the broom stopped moving, and Harry set himself straight again. George yelled something to him, and after a second they headed back towards their positions.

"Harry!" Oliver's yell made me jump, but I followed his pointing finger and saw a tiny glimmer of gold. Harry zoomed towards the ground and followed the snitch, and suddenly he was so close to the ground he couldn't sit properly.

"What are you doing? You'll kill yourself!" Alicia screamed. Harry had stood on his broom and his position now somewhat resembled that of a surfer, his arms stretched out in front and behind him. I held my breath, and Oliver's hand suddenly clasped my arm. He jumped.

"HARRY!" Oliver and I set off at full speed, and Fred and George had done the same, as had the other two girls. Harry was on all fours on the grass, looking like he was about to be sick. We all stopped as his stood, a hand to his mouth. Then, he lurched forward and held something up.

"The snitch! Potter's got the snitch!" Lee cheered, and we flew towards him. I practically jumped off my broom and the team surrounded Harry in a hug, all of us cheering.

"GRYFFINDOR WINS! YES!" Lee was jumping around in the commentator's box, and the whole stadium (bar the Slytherins) fell into applause and cheers.

* * *

"He didn't catch it! He almost swallowed it!" Flint was moaning to Hooch. The joy had surpressed slightly, but Jordan was still yelling happily about the win and the cheers from the stands were still overbearing. Oliver slung his arm around my shoulders and the Slytherin team attempted to call it a foul. Harry had already left the stadium, running off in a hurry with those two friends of his.

"Do you even know the rules?" Alicia yelled at them, a smirk on her face,

"Harry didn't break any rules!" Angie carried on, a hand on her hip.

"We won fair and square!" I grinned, my arm flying around Oliver's neck. Flint continued his tantrum as we made our way to the changing rooms. Those still in the stands were now singing and cheering the win, and most of the Slytherins had left in their grumpy mood.

"IT'S NOT FAIR!" Marcus wailed. I sent Oliver a sneaky smirk.

"Too bad, so sad." I said slowly in a sing song voice. He smirked too.

"Too bad, so sad." We began to chant, and after a moment the twins caught on, skipping ahead and singing at the top of their voices.

"Too bad, so sad!" Now the whole team were singing it tauntingly, the Slytherins glaring at us.

"Too bad, so sad!" Now most of the Gryffindors in the crowd were singing too, and I could have sworn Hooch had a slight smirk on her face, but we were in the changing room before I had chance to make sure.

"We won!" Oliver was cheering the minute we were in the room. He repositioned his arm around my neck and pulled me into a hug, before releasing me and pulling Angie and Alicia in my place. Fred and George were still singing, despite the fact that the Slytherins could no longer hear us. I sat down, and rubbed the back of my head, where a dull pain had been residing since I was hit.

"You alright, babe?" Angie said with a smile as she sat beside me. I nodded, and she sighed before turning my head and inspecting the back of it.

"It's bruising, and we'll have to keep an eye on you tonight, in case you have concussion, but you should be alright. She smiled and patted my shoulder before grabbing her towel and heading off for the shower. For once, I was out with the others. We left Oliver in the changing room as we always did after a match, and we could already hear his loud cheers the minute the door had closed. He liked to have a private celebration after we'd left, though of course he didn't know that we knew.

"Congrats, team." Fred said as we headed back towards the castle, "You ladies really did well with those plays."

"What about Pucey, eh?" I said, "How did that slime manage to dodge us three and the Bludgers you sent? There had to be some cheating there!" The twins agreed angrily, but Angie sighed.

"What's it matter? We won by a hundred and ten points! They had no bloody chance."

"I think we should be more concerned by Harry's broom" Alicia said, "The way it went crazy was so weird. Flint had to have done something when he hit him."

Angie shook her head, "He wouldn't have been able to do that, it was some seriously skilled magic and we all know Flint can't float a feather." We all chuckled at this, but George's face turned serious for once.

"We need to keep a close eye on him next match," He said.

"If he plays at all," continued Fred, "I mean if his broom does it again McGonagall won't let him play. It is Harry Potter after all."

"Exactly!" Angie said, "As if a bloody broomstick could knock the Great Potter when a Dark Lord can't even manage it!" we all laughed, and grinned as cheers greeted us as we entered the Great Hall.

* * *

"Well done, you lot!" Lee said, grinning from ear to ear, as he hugged each of the twins. Angelina gave him a harsh slap on the shoulder, probably for what he'd said at the start of the game.

"I'm sorry!" He cowered, "It was a compliment!" Alicia snorted as Angelina rolled her eyes.

"Some Gryffindor you are!" She laughed, "Cowering from Angie!" The two girls fell to bickering ("What's that supposed to mean?") And I fell to daydreaming.

"What do you think, Katie?" I looked up and smiled, hoping they hadn't noticed.

"Yeah, good idea." I said, hoping that I could conceal that I hadn't been listening.

"What where you daydreaming about?" Alicia said, rolling her eyes as the others laughed.

"What? I wasn't daydreaming!" I defending, making them laugh even harder.

"We were talking about fruit, I asked if you liked pineapple and you said, 'good idea'. You were totally daydreaming." I sighed and stabbed my fork in a sprout.

"Whatever. Besides, who talks about fruit on a day to day basis!" I said moodily, chomping on the sprout with a frown.

"Sup, team?" Oliver said with a smile, sitting down beside me.

"Nothing much, Katie was just dreaming about her boyfriend." Lee said, sticking his tongue out at me. I was about to make a rude gesture when Oliver said,

"Boyfriend?"

"I don't have a bloody boyfriend, Jordan's just being a prat." He grinned and winked at me, and I finally got to use my gesture.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Sorry it's been so long since my last update. I've been a little distracted lately, and although I've been on holiday these past two weeks the only thing I've really had time to write is oneshots, plus I've also been working on some original stuff (For once) This chapter's not jam-packed with drama, but I enjoyed writing it. Please do review, it brightens my day! Enjoy!**

* * *

Alicia grinned as we entered our dorm. I sat on the end of my bed, Angie taking the floor. "I'm so glad we won! Harry truly is an amazing flier!"

"He is. We're lucky he joined the team. I can't imagine where he'd get raw talent like that!"

"Oh come on, Angie, don't tell me you haven't seen the trophy shelf! It's in his genes! James Potter was only the _best_ chaser Hogwarts has probably ever seen, not to mention he composed a team that was literally unbeatable!"

"Yeah, I know!" Angelina said, rolling her eyes.

"And as I've heard, he was worse than Wood!"

"Nobody's as bad as Oliver!" I laughed, and Alicia shrugged.

"I don't know, McGonagall was a pretty harsh player, as I've heard." Angie commented.

"True. It's a shame that she got injured. Then again, if she hadn't she might not have become a Professor."

"Yeah, but would that be such a bad thing? McGonagall's _so harsh_ with homework!" I groaned, and the other two girls laughed.

* * *

The winter holidays had almost dawned, and Katie, along with Angelina, the twins and Oliver had signed up to remain at Hogwarts. Alicia wasn't too happy about being the only one on the team who was leaving, but her mother had demanded she come home to meet her new cousin. "It's so unfair!" She complained two days before the final day, her arms crossed on her chest as she glared into the fire.

"You know what isn't fair?" Fred said with a growl, "Mum and Dad leaving us here while they go to see Charlie in Romania!"

"Yeah!" agreed George, "He is our brother! And he's a lot more exciting than Percy. I mean, come on, dragons! Their stopping us from seeing dragons!"

"I can see why she wants you to stay here." I mumbled, and Angelina snorted from beside me. A smirk crept onto Oliver's face.

"There was no need for that, Miss Bell!" Fred said, though his mouth had turned up at the corner.

"She does have a good point – Say, Oliver, does the fact that I'm not here mean I don't have to practice over the holiday?" She grinned at the looks of horror the other gave her – Two whole weeks free. Oliver wouldn't do that though, would he?

"Don't worry, guys, I won't take your holidays from you." He laughed as the whole team gave a collective sigh of relief. "I'll still expect all of you to stay fit though. How about we do a couple of laps round the pitch. Completely your choice of course."

"I'm out!" Angelina said, rubbing her hands together, "I'm planning on eating as much chocolate as I can! It's Christmas, after all!"

* * *

The whole team stood to wave the train off as it left Hogsmeade Station. Ron and Harry were stood some feet away, waving to Hermione, who was decidedly to take the journey with our darling Alicia. The two girls were waving through the window, and the group stayed until the train was long out of sight. "great now that they're gone let's talk about them!" George said with a grin. Angie chuckled, hitting his shoulder,

"Stop being a prat, George!" Fred shook his head and the five began walking towards the castle.

"Being a prat is throwing snowballs at a Pofessor," Oliver said with a sigh, "If that had been during term time I'd have made you work twice as hard for the detentions."

"Yeah, but it was pretty funny!" I laughed, "Quirrel's face was golden!"

"Not to mention all the weird noises he was making. It honestly sounded like he was being hit in the face!" Angelina chuckled.

Fred shrugged, "Yeah, but Quirrel's weird anyway." They all nodded in agreement.

* * *

A few days later found Katie, Oliver and the twins sat on the floor by the fire. Katie had insisted that she work on her transfiguration work, and Oliver, Fred and George had begrudgingly decided to join her. Angelina had promptly refused, saying that she was going to meet some friends. "Why do we have to stay with you, Kate?" George moaned. He and Fred were charming

"Because if you don't I'll be alone."

"And?" Fred smirked, "What's your point?" I frowned, glaring at the boy before turning back to the beetle in the pot before me.

"You've been at that for ages." Oliver observed, looking over his book at me as I attempted once more to turn the creature into a button.

"And you've been reading that book for years." I snapped. He placed said book, Quidditch Through the Ages, on the table beside him as he crouched next to me. He smirked, tapping the beetle with his wand. A shock of white light, and a button appeared in it's place. I glared at him.

"Show off." I muttered, and he winked. My stomach did a back flip. Since when was that a thing? I crossed my arms, before standing and making my way out of the common room.

* * *

Christmas dawned too early. Angie was straddling me, shaking me by both my shoulders and yelling "Katie get your ass up! It's Christmas!" I grumbled, pushing her off of me and covering my face with my duvet.

"I don't want to." I whined.

"Well tough cookie because you are getting up and coming down to the common room to open your presents!" I sighed as she finished speaking, and dragged myself out of bed. Neither of us bothered getting dressed, and we made our way to the common room in our pyjamas.

"Well if it isn't Miss Bell and Miss Johnson, what a lovely surprise to see you up this early!" Oliver grinned. He and the twins were already there, a pile of presents before them.

"Shut up, Wood." I muttered, sitting in the armchair across from him with me legs beneath me. Normally I'd have my knees to my chest, but my pyjamas were rather short and I didn't want to risk anything.

"You really aren't a morning person. Angie, stick the presents down here so we can get started!"

* * *

Wood had, as expected, received almost exclusively Quidditch related-items, with a box of Bertie Bott's from the twins to add 'variety' as they called it. I had got a large book on magical creatures from my parents, a broom repair kit from Oliver (He knew that I was beginning to run out of polish), a packet of Hiccough-sweets from the twins, some makeup from Alicia, typical, and a plush Quaffle from Angie. "What are you, five?" Fred had laughed, but his smile had slipped when he saw the usual brown package from his mother. He pulled out the expected jumper – bright blue with the yellow 'F' on the front. George reluctantly opened his own. Identical, but with a 'G' instead. The pair of them shook their heads, before making their way upstairs to find their little brother and Ron.

"Percy won't be too happy. He hates is, but the twins always make him wear it." Oliver laughed. I shrugged,

"I quite like Molly's jumpers, actually. Wouldn't mind one myself. Mother never was any good at knitting."

"Yeah, mine either." Angie agreed. Oliver smirked,

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind making you one. Percy asked her to make me one in our first year, I had to act like I hated it but to be honest I think I still have it somewhere."

"Oliver Wood, liking a present that isn't something Quidditch!" Angie teased, mock surprise etched on her face.

"I know, It's shocking!" He laughed.

* * *

The Feast was, as usual, amazing. The team had sat together, along with Harry, Percy and Ron, and they had all had a wonderful time. The teachers also seemed to be enjoying themselves; Hagrid looked 'ever so slightly' tipsy and Dumbledore was wearing a bonnet. Christmas at Hogwarts truly was magical. "Katie, do you want to head out on the brooms this afternoon? Nothing too drilling, just a few easy laps?" Oliver asked. He was sat beside me, a chipolata in hand. I nodded,

"Yeah go on then. I mean it's cold, but we'll be in the air so the snow won't matter."

"Guys?" Oliver turned to the rest of the table, who all shook their heads.

"We're going to have a snowball fight!" Freed announced with a huge grin, and his twin and younger brother nodded happily. Harry was still eating, but Percy didn't look too sure. The twins would persuade him, though.

"And I'm meeting some of the girls. I'm sure you two will be fine though, right?" Oliver and I nodded as everyone made their way from the hall. Wood stood, a grin on his face.

"Are you coming, Miss Bell, or will I have to carry you out?"

"Is that an offer, Mr Wood?" I laughed, but my laughs turned to squeals as he hoisted me over his shoulder, making his way from the hall. My stomach did the weird flippy-thing again.

"Oliver! I was kidding! Put me down!" I yelled, pointlessly hitting his back as he made his way down the corridor.

* * *

When he did finally set me on the floor, I was bright red and flustered. "I hate you!" I frowned, hitting him lightly on the chest. He smirked,

"No you don't" He got his broom from the shed they were kept in and handed me my own.

"Only because I don't want to be murdered at practice." I stuck my tongue out to him and kicked off, my feet crunching in the snow as I zoomed into the air. It was cold, but bearable. We'd played in worse. Oliver had joined me in seconds.

"I can still go harsh on you, you know." He said, and I shrugged.

"But you won't. If you do, I'll refuse to play. And then what will you do?" Oliver shook his head at that. Ha. Git. Instead of making a comment, he began to slowly fly away.

"hey, where are you going?" I yelled, following him.

"I told you. I'm going for a fly." He said, picking up speed. I did the same.

"Yeah, but a fly where?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Just… around." And with that, he was off. I blinked in shock for a second. If that's what he wanted to do, fine. I leant down on my broom, flying after him.

* * *

They arrived in the common room shortly after the others had, as equally tired and cold. "You two look like you had fun!" George grinned, waving them over. He and the others were crowded by the fire, trying to warm up and dry their hair. Oliver nodded, grinning.

"Yeah, I completely thrashed Kate in a race!"

"No way!" I laughed, "You were miles behind me!"

"You can wish, Katie, but we both know I'm a much better flier than you."

"In your dreams, Wood." I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Oh well isn't that mature?" He asked, smirking.

"Says the person arguing with someone younger than him about winning a race!"

"Hey, winning's important!"

"Only to you Wood!"

"Then why are you arguing back?"

"Because your ego is inflated enough and I don't want to encourage it!" At that he dramatically placed a hand on his chest, pretending that he had been shot.

"Oh, Katie, that hurts!"

"Good-"

"As hilarious as your flirting is, some of us have a headache!" Percy snapped, glaring at us both. I felt my face heat up.

"Shut up, Percy, what do you know?" Oliver snapped, storming up to his dorm. The twins looked at eachother before smirking, and Angelina's face spread into a grin.

"What?" I asked the three of them.

"Nothing!" They replied in unison.


	5. Final Author's Note

Hey guys.

I was reading through all of my multi-chapter stories, because it's been so long since I've written for any of them that I literally don't even remember what I've said… And I just feel like I don't want to continue them. Any of them, to be honest. I was going to simply delete all of stories (I've already taken down most of my one-shots and my not very popular Avengers story) But I know that I hate when stories stop for no reason, and I don't want to leave anyone hanging.

Therefore, this is my official announcement that this story, and all my others on this site, are being henceforth discontinued.

I still love Harry Potter with all my heart, and I do want to continue writing fanfictions. But I just don't like my writing in any of these stories, and I don't see point in going back and changing everything I've said. To be fair, a large reason that I'm stopping is that I've started reading on Ao3 a LOT more than I do on here. I've also gotten into other fandoms such as Percy Jackson and Voltron, and hope to write more for those as well as Harry Potter (Although at the moment I'm not particularily pleased with anything I'm writing, so it might still be a long time before I post anything o there too)

When I started writing, it was basically the only thing I did, my only hobby. I stopped doing my homework in favour of writing and to be honest I think that may be part of the reason I've stopped for this long. I'm going into my final year of Secondary School, so I seriously need to focus on my studies, but I also have more hobbies such as cosplay, prop making, and I've rediscovered my love for reading again. I never used to watch TV too much, but I'm discovering more shows and fandoms every day that I'm loving and enjoying just as I did with Harry Potter, so I want to explore writing fanfics in those fandoms too. Plus, I spend a lot more of my time talking to my friends and girlfriend, and although my mental health is so, so much better than it was, my hearts just not in these stories any more. The plots and the characters, yes, but not how they are right now.

So… yeah. No more using . If anyone's interested, my Archive account is Raven_Woods_2003, so almost the same as it is on here. If I do decide to re-try these plots, or if I think of anything new to write about, they will be over there. I am no longer using this website. Sorry if that disappoints anyone.

To hopefully many great stories in the future, thank you for the support you gave me for all of my stories. The amazing reviews that I were given honestly meant so much to me, and will continue to mean a lot when I write things in the future.

Thank you.

Raven x


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